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Cabin Fever (2002, USA) C-93m. Scope *½ D: Eli Roth. Starring Rider Strong, Jordan Ladd, James DeBello, Cerina Vincent, Joey Kern, Arie Verveen, David Kaufbird (=Eli Roth). Derivative horror movie about a bunch of kids who rent a cabin in the woods for some partying and end up dying from an unnamed virus. Takes its cue completely from horror classics such as EVIL DEAD and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and adds nothing new. Not even fun on a no-brain level. Still, enjoyed a great box-office success. Angelo Badalamenti contributed to the score. |
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Cacciatore 2 (1980, ITA) C-97m. Scope ** D: Anthony M. Dawson. Starring David Warbeck, Tisa Farrow, John Steiner. Warbeck takes up a secret mission in Vietnam and stumbles upon journalist Farrow in the jungle, who helps him accomplish it. Pretty trivial and exploitational (some typically Italian gore scenes), war action remains watchable nevertheless. English title: THE LAST HUNTER. |
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Cadaveri Eccellenti (1976, ITA/FRA) C-120m. *** D: Francesco Rosi. Starring Lino Ventura, Tino Carraro, Marcel Bozzuffi, Max von Sydow, Charles Vanel, Fernando Rey, Luigi Pistilli, Florestano Vancini. Intelligent political drama typecasts Ventura as a hardened cop, who investigates the kililng of several judges, all set against the backdrop of a burgeoning political revolution. Slow-going but richly textured drama is superbly acted, especially by von Sydow. Similar to I… COMME ICARE, only not as technically perfect. Based on the novel by Leonardo Sciascia (A CIASCUNO IL SUO). Cowritten by director Rosi. English titles: THE CONTEXT and ILLUSTRIOUS CORPSES. |
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Caged Heat (1974, USA) C-83m. **½ D: Jonathan Demme. Starring Erica Gavin, Donald Heitzer, Mike Shack, Gary Goetzman, Juanita Brown, Barbara Steele, George Armitage. Typical (apart from the setting) women-in-chains movie about a group of inmates, who decide to bust out – once and for all. Enough action, nudity to please fans. Steele is fun as a wheelchair-bound warden. Upbeat ending makes the movie. Maverick director Demme’s first film, produced by Roger Corman. That’s director George Armitage (GROSSE POINT BLANK) and his family in the Volvo the gang steals. Second project (after BADLANDS) for renowned cinematographer Tak Fujimoto. Followed by an in-name-only sequel twenty years later! |
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Cake (2005, USA) C-94m. ** D: Nisha Ganatra. Starring Heather Graham, David Sutcliffe, Taye Diggs, Sandra Oh, Keram Malicki-Sánchez, Cheryl Hines, Nisha Ganatra. Light-weight comedy about thrill-seeking nymphomaniac Graham, whose life takes a turn when she must take over her ill father’s wedding magazine. Predictable stuff, though Graham (also exec-producer) is cute to watch. |
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Caligola: La Storia Mai Raccontata (1981, ITA) C-91m. ** D: David Hills (=Joe D’Amato). Starring David Brandon, Laura Gemser, Oliver Finch, Michele Soavi, Gabriele Tinti. Sex drama (if there is such a thing) about the exploits of notorious Roman emperor Caligola (or Caligula), whose debaucheries and slaughterings are depicted here in no-holds-barred fashion. Surprisingly watchable for a D’Amato movie… although there is a 109m. Italian version that is said to contain hardcore footage and even more violence. Review refers to the 91m. unrated version released in the U.S. Brandon is good in the title role, so is the score. D’Amato also photographed and scripted (wth George Eastman). Alternative titles: EMPEROR CALIGULA (with various subtitles) and CALIGULA II: THE UNTOLD STORY. |
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Calling, The (2000, USA/GER) C-89m. M D: Richard Caesar. Starring Laura Harris, Richard Lintern, Alice Krige, Nick Brimble, Rachel Shelley. In a hospital Harris tells a priest how she married rich Lintern, became pregnant, bore his child and slowly realized that it was actually the anti-christ she was raising. Pretentious, derivative chiller with many absurd plot twists. Well-photographed but about as intelligent as Rosamunde Pilcher adaptations. The Germans were never meant to make horror films. |
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Caltiki – il Mostro Immortale (1959, ITA/USA) B&W-75m. **½ D: Robert Hamton (=Riccardo Freda). Starring John Merivale, Didi Perego, Gérard Herter, Daniela Rocca, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, Daniele Vargas, Arturo Dominici. Quite atmospheric horror set in Mexico, where an expedition team is repeatedly attacked by a monster identified as an old Mayan goddess. They bring home part of the monster’s tissue – a terrible mistake. Direction succeeds in imitating U.S. monster horrors of the 1950s, but generally film can’t escape its B-movie origins. For buffs. Cinematographer Mario Bava completed the film sans credit and also created the good, gooey special effects, remarkably violent for the time. English title: CALTIKI, THE IMMORTAL MONSTER. |
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Camorra (1972, ITA) C-88m. *½ D: Pasquale Squitieri. Starring Fabio Testi, Jean Seberg, Raymond Pellegrin, Charles Vanel, Germana Canacina, Paul Müller. Mafia movie chronicling the rise of criminal Testi, who uses his wits and fists to become a respected mafioso. It’s just a matter of time until he tries to overthrow his boss. Despite stars Tsti and Seberg, this lumbering drama is a complete waste of time, with Squitieri’s direction downright irritating at some points. See also CORLEONE (1977). |
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Candy (1968, USA/ITA/FRA) C-124m. **½ D: Christian Marquand. Starring Ewa Aulin, John Astin, Richard Burton, Ringo Starr, Walter Matthau, James Coburn, John Huston, Charles Aznavour, Marlon Brando, Elsa Martinelli, Sugar Ray Robinson, Anita Pallenberg, Lea Padovani, Florinda Bolkan, Marilù Tolo, Nicoletta Machiavelli, Umberto Orsini, Enrico Maria Salerno, Buck Henry, Christian Marquand. Curio from the late 60s with a gargantuan cast about naïve, sexy blonde teenager Aulin, who finds herself in all kinds of crazy situations because all the men she meets want to have sex with her. Glossy satire has some great roles for stars (especially Burton as an iconoclastic, alcoholic poet), but that alone doesn’t justify two-hour-plus running time. A must for late 60s adepts, though. Some of the editing is really good. Introductory sequence by Douglas Trumbull is reminiscent of his work for 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY. Screenplay by Buck Henry, based on the novel by Terry Southern and Mason Hoffenberg. Beautiful Swedish starlet Aulin made this right after the pop-art giallo LA MORTE HA FATTO L’UOVO. |
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Candyman (1992, USA) C-98m. *** D: Bernard Rose. Starring Virginia Madsen, Tony Todd, Xander Berkeley, Kasi Lemmons, Vanessa Williams, DeJuan Guy, Michael Culkin, Bernard Rose. Unusual horror film, adapted from writer Clive Barker's short story The Forbidden. University student Madsen, researching for her thesis on urban legends, comes across the legend of Candyman, a black painter whose hand was sawn off by his lover's father. They say he will appear if his name is uttered five times before a mirror. Does he really exist? Plot complications and great shock effects make this one of the best horror films of the 1990s. The ending is a beauty. A rare, intelligent, even melancholy story, well-executed by Rose (PAPERHOUSE, IMMORTAL BELOVED), who also wrote the screenplay. Followed by two sequels. |
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Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh (1995, USA) C-94m. ** D: Bill Condon. Starring Tony Todd, Kelly Rowan, Timothy Carhart, Veronica Cartwright, William O'Leary, Fay Hauser, Bill Nunn, Matt Clark. Sequel to the above is nothing special, as 'Candyman' Todd turns up in New Orleans to take revenge on a woman whose ancestors killed him years ago. Well-enough produced and filmed, but story fails to evoke much interest. Best things about this movie are Todd as the killer and the original score from the first part. |
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Candyman: Day of the Dead (1999, USA) C-93m. *½ D: Turi Meyer. Starring Donna D’Errico, Tony Todd, Leonardo Guerra, Mike Moroff, Mark Adair-Rios. Tiring rehash of the original has dumb blonde D’Errico being menaced by her great-granddaddy Candyman (Todd), who is going on yet another killing spree. Starts nicely but suffers from an acute lack of new ideas. D’Errico looks embarrassed in her first starring feature. Let’s hope this was the end of Candyman. Went directly to video. |
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Cani Arrabbiati (1974, ITA) C-96m. *** D: Mario Bava. Starring Riccardo Cucciolla, Lea Lander, Maurice Poli, Luigi Montefiori (=George Eastman), Aldo Caponi (=Don Backy), Erica Dario. Unexpected latter-day masterpiece from horror icon Mario Bava, long considered a “lost” film, but restored entirely in 1996 after remaining unreleased for more than 20 years. The plot: After a successful robbery three ruthless gangsters (Poli, Eastman, Backy) take three hostages (Cucciolla, Leander and a child) and race across the country in constant fear of being caught. Whose nerves will be the first to break? Violent, profane, intensely acted thriller is one of Bava’s best films, despite being his only intentionally realistic – even nihilistic – movie. His involving, claustrophobic direction keeps things at a fever pitch from start to finish. The final twist will make your jaw drop. Excellent score by Stelvio Cipriani. Due to subject matter and crass presentation, film would certainly have been labeled a “video nasty” and banned in many countries in the 70s and 80s; today its reputation is that of a cult film. Definitely a challenge to all Mario Bava fans. (Note: The Maestro has a brief cameo as a man walking past the car, complaining about the prices). English title: RABID DOGS. Also known as SEMAFORO ROSSO. In 2002 Lamberto Bava and producer Alfredo Leone teamed up to recut the film yet again (Lamberto even re-filmed some scenes according to his late father’s notes) and released it as KIDNAPPED. |
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Canicule (1983, FRA) C-101m. Scope *** D: Yves Boisset. Starring Lee Marvin, Miou-Miou, Jean Carmet, Victor Lanoux, David Bennent, Bernadette Lafont, Grace de Capitani, Tina Louise, Jean-Claude Dreyfus, Muni, Juliette Mills. Marvin is impressive as an American criminal on the run in France, who hides out at an isolated farm, whose inhabitants are primitive farmers. One of them, abused wife Miou-Miou wants to help him thinking she’ll also have a chance to get away. Stylish depiction of violence is somewhat reminiscent of Sam Peckinpah’s action films. Script loses momentum after about an hour but delivers a satisfactory conclusion. Good performances by Carmet and Bennent, but it’s Marvin as the prototype of the American gangster, who makes this thriller ultimately worth watching. Based on a novel by Jean Vautrin (alias Jean Herman). Screenplay by Jean Herman, Dominique Roulet, Serge Korber, Michel Audiard and director Boisset. Score by Francis Lai. English title: DOG DAY. |
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Cannibal Ferox (1980, ITA) C-93m. ** D: Umberto Lenzi. Starring John Morghen, Lorainne DeSelle, Robert Kerman. Young anthropologist goes to the Amazon jungle trying to prove that there are no more cannibals in the world today. However, in a little village she and her friends find a tribe that feeds on human flesh. Standard cannibal exploitation is probably too gruesome for most to rate it higher than M. It is watchable though, and there is slightly more plot than usual. The music score is not bad either. |
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Cannibal Holocaust (1979, ITA/COL) C-95m. *½ D: Ruggero Deodato. Starring Robert Kerman, Francesca Ciardi, Perry Pirkanen, Luca Barbareschi. When a team of four documentary filmmakers go missing in the Amazon jungle, professor Kerman follows their trail to confirm suspicions that they were killed by cannibals. Genre “classic” has a semi-documentary-like script but reveals its true nature when it resorts to showing cruelties towards animals and ultimately gross special effects. Considered by many insiders to be the best, most harrowing of the cannibal films, especially because of its shockingly realistic effects and a (perversely) beautiful score by Riz Ortolani. As a matter of fact, this one is pseudo-critical and sensationalistic and should be rejected. Lamberto Bava was assistant director. |
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Cannonball (1976, USA/HGK) C-77m. **½ D: Paul Bartel. Starring David Carradine, Bill McKinney, Veronica Hamel, Gerrit Graham, Robert Carradine, Belinda Balaski, Carl Gottlieb, John Herzfeld, James Keach, John Alderman, Roger Corman, Joe Dante, Jonathan Kaplan, Martin Scorsese, Paul Bartel, Sylvester Stallone, Allan Arkush, Don Simpson. Trashy but kinetic B-movie about an illegal coast-to-coast car race that involves many competitors. Violent, funny, for cult movie lovers, although film plods at times. Originally shown at 93m. Other films made in that vein: THE GUMBALL RALLYE, CANNONBALL RUN I + II. Photographed by Tak Fujimoto, Chuck (Charles) Russell (THE BLOB) did the art direction. |
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Can’t Hardly Wait (1998, USA)
C-100m. **½ D: Harry Elfont, Deborah Kaplan. Starring Jennifer Love
Hewitt, Ethan Embry, |
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Cape Fear (1991, USA) C-128m. Scope *** D: Martin Scorsese. Starring Robert De Niro, Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange, Juliette Lewis, Joe Don Baker, Robert Mitchum, Gregory Peck, Martin Balsam, Illeana Douglas. Chilling, well-made suspense thriller about lawyer Nolte, whose past comes to haunt him in the form of hard-hitting, intelligent – and ultra-mean ex-con De Niro, who intends to make him pay for sending him to prison 14 years earlier. Nolte’s attempts to nail him fail miserably, as De Niro has not only exercised (and tatooed) his body but also his mind. Remake of the 1962 film has too many improbable twists and emphasises unrelenting degradation but it is technically excellent. De Niro’s electrifying performance is among his best. Showdown at Cape Fear features one of the tensest finales of film history. A highly suspenseful and stylish thriller. Scorsese and his cinematographer Francis pay homage to Italian lens masters Bava and Argento in terms of style (and also plot, to some degree). Excellent use of the original Bernard Herrman score (rearranged by Elmer Bernstein). Mitchum and Peck starred in the 1962 original version, which was based on the novel The Executioners by John D. McDonald. |
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Capitaine Fracasse (1961, FRA/ITA) C-99m. Scope ** D: Pierre Gaspard-Huit. Starring Jean Marais, Geneviève Grad, Gérard Barray, Anna Maria Ferrero, Philippe Noiret, Louis de Funès, Jean Rochefort, Sacha Pitoëff. Marais plays a poor nobleman who joins a group of touring actors and falls in love with beautiful Grad. However, he is rivalled by an evil count. Weakly paced adaptation of Théophile Gautier’s novel distributes action, adventure, comedy and romance in equal doses. Remains watchable thanks to an engaging cast and good production values. Previously filmed in 1942 by Abel Gance. |
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Capote (2005, CDN/USA) C-114m. Scope *** D: Bennett Miller. Starring Philip Seyour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Clifton Collins Jr., Bob Balaban, Bruce Greenwood, Mark Pellegrino. Hoffman’s Oscar-winning performance as Truman Capote buoys this slow-moving drama about the genesis of the famous writer’s true-crime classic In Cold Blood. Good work by first-time director Miller. There’s great power in the quiet images and the score by Mychael Danna, though nothing can match Richard Brooks’ brilliant 1967 adaptation of the book |
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Caprice (1967, USA) C-98m. Scope **½ D: Frank Tashlin. Starring Doris Day, Richard Harris, Ray Walston, Jack Kruschen, Edward Mulhare, Michael J. Pollard. Latter-day Doris Day vehicle (one of her last films) in which she plays an agent for a cosmetics company, who need the latest formula from their competitor, and so Day has to go spying around. She gets involved with suave Harris, who works as a double agent. Great late-60s look and costumes, so-so James Bond-like story, only more harmless. For fans of this kind of fluff. |
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Capricorn One (1978, USA/GBR) C-123m. Scope *** D: Peter Hyams. Starring Elliott Gould, James Brolin, Brenda Vaccaro, Sam Waterston, O.J. Simpson, Hal Holbrook, Karen Black, Telly Savalas, David Huddleston, James (B.) Sikking. Good science-fiction thriller about first, bally-hooed mission to Mars. Moments before take-off, the astronauts are led out of the space ship and brought to a remote base in the desert. It turns out that the mission had to be cancelled – but the agency wants it broadcast, even if it means that the sequences of the Mars landing have to be filmed in a studio. Soon the astronauts realize that they are merely pawns in a sham that must remain a secret at all costs. Reporter Gould is the only one who starts being suspicious. Compelling stuff, written by director Hyams (2010). Fine score by Jerry Goldsmith, photography by Bill Butler. Another remarkable sci-fi film from the 1970s. |
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Captain Corelli’s Mandolin (2001, USA/GBR/FRA) C-131m. Scope *** D: John Madden. Starring Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz, John Hurt, Christian Bale, Irene Papas, David Morrissey. Sumptuously filmed drama set on a Greek island shortly before the Greek’s involvement in World War Two. Beauty Cruz is engaged to hotspur Bale, but when he leaves for the front in Albania, she sets her sights on Italian Captain Corelli (Cage), whose charm infatuates her. Intelligently written, beautifully photographed (by John Toll), but film is very similar to Best Foreign Film Oscar winner MEDITERRANEO (1991). John Hurt is wonderful as Cruz’ wise father. Based on the book by Louis de Bernières. |
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Carambola, Filotto… Tutti in Buca (1975, ITA) C-84m. Scope **½ D: Ferdinando Baldi. Starring Paul L. Smith, Michael Coby (=Antonio Cantafora), Glauco Onorato, Gabriella Andreini, Piero Lulli. Silly but engaging spaghetti western comedy with Terence Hill/Bud Spencer lookalikes Smith and Coby always on the run from the sheriff, the army and other bandits. In the center of attention: a motorbike with an installed machine gun. Not much in terms of plot, but quite funny. Title song by Bixio and Tempera is good. A sequel to CARAMBOLA (1974). English title: TRINITY AND CARAMBOLA, and CARAMBOLA’S PHILOSOPHY: IN THE RIGHT POCKET. |
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Carambolages (1963, FRA) 87m. **½ D: Marcel Bluwal. Starring Jean-Claude Brialy, Louis de Funès, Michel Serrault, Sophie Daumier, Anne Tonietti, Pierre Tchernia, Dominique Zardi, Alain Delon. Farcical comedy is a French imitation of Billy Wilder’s ONE, TWO, THREE (1961). Simple employee Brialy indebts himself, hoping to get promoted in the near future. When his plans are thwarted, he finds himself contemplating murder. Meanwhile, his boss de Funès is trying to find a new slogan for their company called 321(!). Excellent performances by de Funès (in a less comic turn than usual) and Serrault (as an overanxious police inspector) make this recommendable to fans of French comedies, but plot is completely incredible and dramatically uneven. Based on a novel by Fred Kassak. English title: CAROM SHOTS. |
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Caretaker, The (2008, USA) C-79m. *** D: Bryce Olson. Starring Kira Verrastro, James Immekus, Jennifer Freeman, Andrew St. John, Diego J. Torres, Jennifer Tilly, Judd Nelson, Jonathon Breck. Slasher horror film is perfect teen fodder. Three guys want to give their dates a good scare in an old house near a grapefruit orchard, little knowing that the local legend (title character) has returned, and he ain’t picking fruit. Not to be taken seriously, this teen horror movie is good fun, less offensive than most. Competently directed and scored, despite low-budget. Tilly provides comic relief as a teacher who wants to become a celebrity by any means. |
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Carne Trémula (1997, SPA/FRA) C-101m. Scope *** D: Pedro Almodóvar. Starring Javier Bardem, Francesca Neri, Liberto Rabal, Ángela Molina, José Sancho, Penélope Cruz, Pilar Bardem. Based loosely on the novel by Ruth Rendell, this typical Almodóvar concoction concerns a young convict (Bardem), who, upon release, enters the life of a cop and his lover, who brought him to prison in the first place. Bizarre complications ensue that are best not revealed here. Excellent production values complement fine dramatic work, stylish photography and moving score. One of Almodóvar’s best films. English title: LIVE FLESH. |
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Carnival of Souls (1962, USA) 78m. ** D: Herk Harvey. Starring Candace Hilligoss, Sidney Berger, Frances Feist, Herk Harvey, Stan Levitt, Art Ellison. After having barely survived a car accident, organist Hilligoss is haunted by a zombie-like figure. Is her imagination running wild? Poorly acted and directed horror movie isn’t very scary, but has developed a cult reputation nevertheless due to unusual, intriguing plotline and its obvious influence on George A. Romero’s THE NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Original running time: 91m. Remade in 1997. |
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Carrie (1976, USA) C-98m. *** D: Brian DePalma. Starring Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, Betty Buckley, Nancy Allen, John Travolta, P.J. Soles. Unusual, now-classic horror drama about teenage girl Spacek, who is constantly picked at by her high school mates, and above all suffers under her fanatically religious mother. Slowly, telekinetic powers break loose inside her and pave the way for revenge… Bafflingly stylish, well-directed horror was the first Stephen King adaptation and is rightfully regarded today as one of the best. Spacek is exceptional. Screenplay by Lawrence D. Cohen. Followed by a sequel in 1999 (THE RAGE: CARRIE 2). |
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Carrington (1995, GBR/FRA) C-122m. *** D: Christopher Hampton. Starring Emma Thompson, Jonathan Pryce, Steven Waddington, Rufus Sewell, Samuel West, Penelope Wilton. Interesting portrait of two historical British figures of the early 20th century. Biographer and writer Lytton Strachey, a homosexual, meets sexually repressed, boyish painter Dora Carrington (Thompson) and falls in love with her. Sensitively handled, well-scored drama explores their difficult relationship over twenty years. Overlong and not always on target, but very well-acted. Recommended to fans of British historical dramas. |
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Cars (2006, USA) C-124m. Scope *** D: John Lasseter, Joe Ranft. Starring (the voices of) Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, Bonnie Hunt, Larry the Cable Guy, Cheech Marin, Tony Shalhoub, Guido Quaroni, Jenifer Lewis, John Ratzenberger, Michael Keaton, Jeremy Piven, Michael Schumacher, Jay Leno, Mario Andretti. Another funny, entertaining movie from Pixar, where all the characters are cars. Up-and-coming racing star Lightning McQueen (Wilson) must travel to California for a big showdown with his rivals, after a nightly incident ends up in a town that has more or less has been forgotten, where he is not famous. He is about to learn a lesson in his life. Needless to say, this is very well-animated, with funny characters (loved the Italian mechanics) and situations to make up for the predictable script. Co-directed Ranft’s final film; he died in a car crash months before it was released. |
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Cars That Ate Paris, The (1974, AUS) C-88m. Scope ** D: Peter Weir. Starring Terry Camilleri, John Meillon, Melissa Jaffa, Kevin Miles, Bruce Spence. Odd initial feature by vintage director Peter Weir. The survivor of a car crash near small Australian town of Paris is integrated into their community and learns that they deliberately create car crashs so they can sell the spare parts. Low-key, uninvolving, with an unappealing lead actor. Assets of this film are nice photography and unusual story idea, which was turned into a screenplay by director Weir. Social criticism, a theme that pervades all of Weir’s films, is mild at best. Also known as THE CARS THAT EAT PEOPLE. Chris Noonan (BABE) was assistant director. |
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Cartaio, Il (2004, ITA) C-103m. ** D: Dario Argento. Starring Stefania Rocca, Liam Cunningham, Claudio Santamaria, Fiore Argento. A serial killer is challenging the police to play online poker games with him. If he wins, he will kill his victims, if not, he will let them go. Policewoman Rocca is out to investigate with boozing Irishman Cunningham. Obvious, hardly convincing thriller from Argento, an unfortunately botched attempt at modernizing his giallo formula. Rocca is appealing, though. Her character was played by Asia Argento in the 1996 LA SINDROME DI STENDHAL. Good score by Claudio Simonetti. Fabrizio Bava (Mario’s grandson) was assistant director. English titles: THE CARD PLAYER, THE CARD DEALER. |
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Casablanca (1942, USA) 102m. **** D: Michael Curtiz. Starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre. Classic masterpiece of filmmaking, probably the best black-and-white film ever made. In an atmosphere of unrest and warfare, two lovers (Bogart and Bergman) meet again and must discover that their love cannot be relived. Timeless, simply beautiful melodrama with an excellent Max Steiner score. Written by Philip, Julius Epstein, Howard Koch and Casey Robinson, based on an unproduced play by Murray Burnett and Joan Alison. Oscar-winner for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay. |
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Casablanca Express (1988, ITA) C-91m. ** D: Sergio Martino. Starring Jason Connery, Francesco Quinn, Donald Pleasence, Luisa Maneri, Jean Sorel, David Brandon, Glenn Ford, Manfred Lehmann. Low-grade actioner based on historical fact: When Winston Churchill must be brought to secret gathering in World War Two Morocco, the Germans will do anything to stop him, even if it means blowing up the Casablanca Express. Some of the action is not bad, but Ford and Pleasence appear in cardboard roles, script is poorly written. Filmed on location. |
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Casa Con la Scala Nel Buio, La (1983, ITA) C-96m. ** D: Lambero Bava. Starring Andrea Occhipinti, Anny Papa, Fabiola Toledo, Michele Soavi, Giovanni Frezza. Minor horror thriller by the son of Mario Bava. Film composer Occhipinti rents a villa in order to complete his latest score but soon realizes that the house is inhabited (haunted?) by a maniac. Interest comes and goes, a step down for Lamberto, whose MACABRO (1980) was not bad. His direction and handling of actors is too often dull. One violent murder scene (in the bathroom) will make this worthwhile for buffs. Michele Soavi was also assistant director. English titles: A BLADE IN THE DARK, HOUSE OF THE DARK STAIRWAY. |
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Casa dalle Finestre Che Ridono, La (1976, ITA) C-110m. ** D: Pupi Avati. Starring Lino Capolicchio, Francesca Marciano, Gianni Cavina, Giulio Pizzirani, Vanna Busoni. Latter-day giallo, made some years after the genre’s heyday. Capolicchio plays a restaurator, who is called to a small village to restore a fresco by a mad artist, who committed suicide. The population doesn’t offer a warm welcome, and Capolicchio soon learns that there’s a mystery behind all this. Early effort by Avati (ZEDER) is unfortunately a disappointment from start to finish. Timing and pace are poor, and film never creates the sense of mystery needed for such a movie. Capolicchio sleepwalks through his role. Bizarre denouement doesn’t make this more interesting. A cult film in Italy, where this was graced with a 25th Anniversary Deluxe DVD edition. Co-scripted by Pupi and Antonio Avati (MACABRO). English title: HOUSE WITH THE WINDOWS THAT LAUGH. |
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Casa d’Appuntamento, La (1972, ITA/GER) C-87m. **½ D: F.L. Morris (= Ferdinando Merighi). Starring Anita Ekberg, Rosalba Neri, Evelyn Kraft, Howard Vernon, Peter Martell, Barbara Bouchet, Roberto Sacchi, Eva Astor, Rolf Eden, Gordon Mitchell, Goffredo Unger, Dick Randall. When a prostitute is found murdered, the police soon have a culprit in seemingly deranged Martell. However, during his flight he is accidentally decapitated, and hookers are still bumped off by a black-gloved assassin. Will inspector Sacchi solve the case? Uneven, convoluted plotting does not iradicate one’s interest in this mystery thriller. Some delightfully off-beat scenes make it worthwhile for giallo lovers. Sacchi’s likeness to Humphrey Bogart is sometimes astounding. Quite gory effects by Carlo Rambaldi. Score by Bruno Nicolai, edited by Bruno Mattei. English titles: THE BOGEYMAN AND THE FRENCH MURDERS, MURDER IN PARIS, and THE PARIS SEX MURDERS. |
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Casa del Sortilegio, La
(1989, ITA) C-90m. *½ D: Umberto Lenzi. Starring Andy J. Forest, Sonia
Petrovna, Susanna Matinoková, Paul Muller, Maria Cumani Quasimodo. One of
several TV horror movies produced in Italy in the late 1980s, this one is
often laughably bad, with poor acting, scripting and only some atmospheric
bits. Forest has dreams of a country house with a witch inside, then his
girlfriend persuades him to take a break in the country. Guess where she
takes him. Only the score by Claudio Simonetti (credited as Claude King) has
some value. English title: THE HOUSE OF WITCHCRAFT. |
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Casa del Tapetto Giallo, La (1983, ITA) C-86m. ***½ D: Carlo Lizzani. Starring Erland Josephson, Béatrice Romand, Vittorio Mezzogiorno, Milena Vukotic. Unique, completely baffling psycho thriller about a young couple who put an ad into a newspaper trying to sell a yellow carpet. One morning the woman is visited by a very strange man, who claims to be interested in the rug but seems to... - well, figure it out for yourself. This clever, well-acted film comes up with so many twists you’ll hunger for the ending. |
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Casa del Tempo, La (1989, ITA) C-84m. **½ D: Lucio Fulci. Starring Kieth Van Hoven, Karina Huff, Paolo Paoloni, Bettina Milne, Peter Hintz, Al Cliver. One of Fulci’s better latter-day movies is gory chiller about three juvenile delinquents, who decide to break into mansion of elderly couple. Little do they know that the couple have just slaughtered their maid. And watch out for the clocks going backwards! Some interesting ideas keep this afloat, but it cannot really escape its B-movie origins. Actually seems like a Poe adaptation. Nice photography by Nino Celeste. Made for theaters, but premiered on TV. English title: THE HOUSE OF CLOCKS. |
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Casanova (2005, USA) C-108m. Scope ** D: Lasse Hallström. Starring Heath Ledger, Sienna Miller, Jeremy Irons, Oliver Platt, Lena Olin, Omid Djalili, Stephen Greif. Biographical dramedy about the life of Giacomo Casanova, the world-famous adulterer, who roamed the channels of Venice, Italy, in the mid-18th century. Here, he is forced to become chaste and marry, or else he must leave the city. Fine production design, but plot is predictable and there is too little action or laughs. A tame movie, which does not live up the title character’s wild bio. Good cinematography by Oliver Stapleton. From the director of CHOCOLAT (2000). |
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Casa Sperduta nel Parco, La (1980, ITA) C-92m. M D: Ruggero Deodato. Starring David Hess, Annie Bell, Christian Borromeo, Giovanni Lombardo Radice. Detestable thriller about two thugs, one of them retarded, who take people at a house hostage – and torture and degrade them in ultra-sadistic fashion. No comment is made by the filmmakers, this is merely one long torture show. Absolutely sick and sickening, rightfully banned in many countries. Probably inspired by Wes Craven’s LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT (1972), which also starred Hess. By the director of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1979). English title: HOUSE BY THE EDGE OF THE PARK. |
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Casa 3 – Ghosthouse, La (1987, ITA/USA) C-95m. ** D: Humphrey Humbert (=Umberto Lenzi). Starring Lara Wendel, Greg Scott, Mary Sellers, Ron Houck, Martin Jay, Kate Silver, Donald O’Brien. Surprisingly watchable horror movie about a group of travelling youngsters, who pick up a weird radio signal and find it is emitted from an empty house. The story behind it is bloodcurdling, as the group are about to find out. Too many unconvincing scenes hamper proceedings, but score by Simon Boswell (reused from AQUARIUS) makes it quite eerie. Produced by an uncredited Joe D’Amato. Photographed by Franco Delli Colli. Probably planned as an inofficial sequel to HOUSE (1986) and HOUSE II (1987) (which were followed by THE HORROR SHOW in 1989), and followed by two sequels itself, WITCHERY (1988) and LA CASA 5 (1990). English title: GHOSTHOUSE. |
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Casino Royale
(1967, GBR/USA) C-131m. Scope
**½ D: John Huston, Val Guest, Ken Hughes, Joseph McGrath, Robert
Parrish, Richard Talmadge. Starring Peter Sellers, Ursula Andress, David
Niven, Orson Welles, Joanna Pettet, Daliah Lavi, Woody Allen, Deborah Kerr,
William Holden, Charles Boyer, John Huston, Kurt Kasznar, George Raft,
Jean-Paul Belmondo, Terence Cooper, Barbara Bouchet, Jacqueline Bisset,
Anjelica Huston, Burt Kwouk, David Lodge, Caroline Munro, Peter O’Toole,
David Prowse, Vladek Sheybal. Swinging Sixties extravaganza is a James Bond
spoof of epic proportions, as the united Secret Services of the world are
trying to revive retired agent 007 (Niven) for an important mission to stop
criminal Le Chiffre (Welles). First 30 minutes are disastrous, and entire
film has very few laughs, but this incredible tomfoolery has to be seen to be
believed. Sellers plays the role of Bond in climactic game of Baccara,
Andress is his sexy Bondgirl. Allen is Dr. Noah(!) and there are lots of
cameos. A time capsule, which is said to have been coscripted by Allen,
Sellers and even Billy Wilder! Nice score by Burt Bacharach. |
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Casino Royale (2006, USA/GBR/GER/CZE) C-144m. Scope **½ D: Martin Campbell. Starring Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright, Giancarlo Giannini, Caterina Murino, Jesper Christensen, Ivana Milicevic, Veruschka (von Lehndorf), Urbano Barberini, Richard Branson, Martin Campbell. Attempt at renewing the James Bond franchise with a new face (Craig). Title is lifted off Ian Fleming’s first novel, with which this has fairly little in common, though. James Bond, at the outset of his career as a secret agent, goes after evil guy Mikkelsen, who is taking care of financial business for terrorists worldwide. It all climaxes in a game of poker with millions at stake, including Bond’s new girlfriend Green. 21st Bond film is almost a disappointment, but not because of Craig, who is a tense and determined agent. The movie is long and talky(!), the bad guy nowhere near the classic Bond villains and two or three big action set-pieces are just not enough (although they are a wow, kudos to editor Stuart Baird). The producers should have stuck with Brosnan for one more Bond – with Quentin Tarantino as a director. Good title song by Chris Cornell (Soundgarden). |
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Cassandra Crossing, The (1976, GBR/ITA/GER) C-128m. Scope **½ D: George P. Cosmatos. Starring Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Martin Sheen, O.J. Simpson, Lionel Stander, Ann Turkel, Ingrid Thulin, Lee Strasberg, Ava Gardner, Burt Lancaster, Lou Castel, John Phillip Law, Ray Lovelock, Alida Valli. Sensational cast in so-so disaster thriller about a virus-infected man aboard a train holding 1,000 passengers. Occasionally exciting, with unfinished plot threads – at least in truncated German version. Loren seems misplaced. Scripted by director Cosmatos, Tom Mankiewicz and Robert Katz. Score by Jerry Goldsmith. |
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Casse, Le (1971, FRA/ITA) C-122m. Scope ** D: Henri Verneuil. Starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Omar Sharif, Dyan Cannon, Robert Hossein, Nicole Calfan, José Luis de Villalonga. Largely disappointing action drama about burglar Belmondo, who manages to steal emeralds worth a million and clever cop Sharif, who tracks him down. Some incredible stunt work by Belmondo himself, but otherwise this is strictly standard despite cast, photography by Claude Renoir, score by Ennio Morricone. Based on a novel by David Goodis, which was filmed before with Jayne Mansfield in 1957. English title: THE BURGLARS. |
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Cast a Dark Shadow (1957, GBR) 76m. *** D: Lewis Gilbert. Starring Dirk Bogarde, Margaret Lockwood, Kay Walsh, Kathleen Harrison, Robert Flemyng. Snappy little psycho drama focuses on Bogarde’s character, a wife-killer who is saddled without inheritance and must marry – and kill? – again. Fine performances, notably Bogarde’s, make this very watchable, though sometimes it’s too stagey (it is based on the play ‘Murder Mistaken’ by Janet Green). Gilbert would later direct three Bond movies. Also known as ANGEL. |
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Cast Away (2000, USA) C-143m. **½ D: Robert Zemeckis. Starring Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, Nick Searcy, Chris Noth, Lari White. Hanks, working for a big mail company, finds little time for his fiancée Hunt (they even have to celebrate Christmas at the airport), but gets more than he likes when his plane crashlands in the Pacific Ocean and he is washed ashore on a tiny unpopulated island. Adventure drama begins to be interesting when he returns to civilization, but then the movie ends and leaves you wanting. The simulated plane crash is breathtaking, and so is actor Hanks’ discipline in gaining and losing a lot of weight, but otherwise this is a film of missed opportunities. A slight disappointment. |
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Castle Freak (1995, USA) C-95m. ** D: Stuart Gordon. Starring Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, Jonathan Fuller, Jessica Dollarhide, Massimo Sarchielli, Elisabeth Kaza, Luca Zingaretti. Follow-up to Full Moon production’s THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM, also shot in Italy. Combs inherits an Italian castle and travels there with his estranged wife and blind daughter. It turns out the recently deceased Duchess has kept her son locked in the cellar for more than forty years, and he is now out on a killing spree. Pretty dumb, quite ugly splatter horror can’t hold a candle to THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM but is an okay view for horror fans. Story by director Gordon, he also cowrote the poor screenplay. |
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Catacombs (1988, USA/ITA) C-88m. **½ D: David Schmoeller. Starring Timothy Van Patten, Ian Abercrombie, Jeremy West, Laura Schaefer, Feodor Chaliapin Jr., Ted Rusoff. Atmospheric horror filmed in Italy by Full Moon. American teacher visiting old monastery is soon threatened by an old demon trapped beyond the catacombs. Its evil powers kill one monk after the other. Plot is too redundant, but most horror fans should like this film; it’s quite good. Score by Pino Donaggio. Also known as CURSE IV: THE ULITMATE SACRIFICE. |
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Cat and the Canary, The (1927, USA) B&W-82m. *** D: Paul Leni. Starring Laura La Plante, Creighton Hale, Forrest Stanley, Tully Marshall, Gertrude Astor. Silent horror classic about several people who gather for the reading of the will in an eerie mansion. Amid the tension the news reaches them that a maniac is on the loose. Enjoyable fare, a prototype for its genre, with stunning expressionistic images and a good score. Based on the play by John Willard, which was filmed five more times, most notably in 1939 (with Bob Hope) and 1979 (with Edward Fox). |
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Catch Me If You Can (2002, USA) C-141m. ** D: Steven Spielberg. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen, Nathalie Baye, Amy Adams, James Brolin, Jennifer Garner, Frank Abagnale Jr. Another comedy misfire by Spielberg tries to recreate real-life story of impostor Frank Abagnale, who forged checks to make a fortune in 1960s America. Hot on his trail is bumbling police detective Hanks, a man without humor, who soon has a personal grudge against the cunning young criminal. Production values are first-rate (production and set designers did a great job), but story or characters never acquire the depth needed to compensate for lack of humor, action or suspense. And why make this so long? Some good performances (notably Walken’s) make it watchable. The usual Spielberg collaborators were involved. |
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Catch-22 (1970, USA) C-122m. Scope **½ D: Mike Nichols. Starring Alan Arkin, Martin Balsam, Richard Benjamin, Art Garfunkel, Jack Gilford, Buck Henry, Bob Newhart, Anthony Perkins, Paula Prentiss, Martin Sheen, Jon Voight, Orson Welles, Bob Balaban, Susanne Benton, Norman Fell, Charles Grodin, Peter Bonerz, Bruce Kirby, Jack Riley, Gina Rovere. Gargantuan cast in attempted blockbuster based on the famous novel by Joseph Heller. Basic story concerns WW2 fighter pilot Arkin, who’d do anything to get a certificate of insanity to able to return home. The problem of the film is that it doesn’t go anywhere from there. Lack of development makes the film difficult to enjoy, even sit through, although there are some amusing scenes. Good cinematography by David Watkin. |
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Catch Us If You Can (1965, GBR) B&W-91m. ** D: John Boorman. Starring Dave Clark, Barbara Ferris, Lenny Davidson, Rick Huxley, Mike Smith. Attempt to cash in on success of the Beatles’ A HARD DAY’S NIGHT (1964) is only notable for being director Boorman’s first movie. Pop group The Dave Clark Five is forgotten by now, and story (Clark and Ferris run away to find an island) is too episodic. Lightweight, none too entertaining. Boorman followed this with the terrific POINT BLANK (1967). Released in the U.S. as HAVING A WILD WEEKEND. |
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Cathérine Cherie (1982, GER/SPA) C-94m. *½ D: Hubert Frank. Starring Berta Cabre, Ajita Wilson. Boring sex film about young starlet Cabre, who enjoys an affair with a journalist, while her ‘protector’ is in Rome with Wilson. The handsome setting of Gran Canaria is the only asset of this film. It’s fairly erotic and slightly better than the rest (which, of course, isn’t saying much). |
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Cat Murkil and the Silks (1976, USA) C-102m. ** D: John A. Bushelman. Starring David Kyle, Steve Bond, Kelly Yaegermann, Rhodes Reason, Meegan King, Don Carter. Standard action fare about a youth gang, whose new leader works only for himself, cheating even his gang members. Quite violent. Re-issued as CRUISIN HIGH. |
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Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958, USA) C-108m. **** D: Richard Brooks. Starring Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives, Jack Carson, Judith Anderson, Madeleine Sherwood, Larry Gates. Powerful drama, based on the classic Tennessee Williams play, about southern family and inner conflicts which surface on the 65th birthday of their patriarchal ‘Big Daddy’ Ives. Great cast in exquisitely looking film, with Ives and Newman especially superb. A bit stagey but compelling adaptation (by Brooks and James Poe) makes more than up for it. A classic. |
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Cauchemares (1977, CDN/FRA) C-82m. *½ D: Eddy Matalon. Starring Alan Scarfe, Randi Allen, Beverly Murray, Sylvie Lenoir. Cheap, unconvincing variation of the Haunted House theme. Years after having been taken out of their house by his mother (which resulted in a fatal car crash of his father and sister), Scarfe returns to his home with his own family. His daughter Allen soon starts behaving strangely – is she influenced by the ghost of her dead aunt? Two or three chilling scenes, the rest is often annoyingly bad. English title: CATHY’S CURSE. |
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Cav. Constante Nicosia Demoniaco, Ovvero: Dracula in Brianza, Il (1975, ITA) C-89m. ** D: Lucio Fulci. Starring Lando Buzzanca, Rossano Brazzi, Sylva Koscina, Moira Orfei, Christa Linder, John Steiner. Ciccio Ingrassia, Valentina Cortese, Ilona Staller. Very superstitious businessman Buzzanca is cursed by an old woman and just then travels to Romania to make a deal with a sinister count. If that’s not something to be scared! Fast-talking, fast-paced horror spoof is a minor entry in filmmaker Fulci’s filmography. Its low-brow humor won’t appeal to everyone, some gags are simply tasteless. Script cowritten by Mario Amendola, Pupi Avati and Bruno Corbucci. Contains a reference to Mel Brooks’ YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974), hence the English title: YOUNG DRACULA. Also known as DRACULA IN THE PROVINCES. |
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Cazadores, Los (1974, SPA/USA) C-104m. Scope M D : Peter Collinson. Starring Peter Fonda, Cornelia Sharpe, John Phillip Law, Richard Lynch, Alberto de Mendoza, William Holden, Helga Liné. Extremely unappealing and unpleasant thriller about three Vietnam vets who kidnap a pair of lovers and hunt them across the country. Nice photography aside, this film probably does more to endorse than condemn violence. Only for 70s film buffs that watch everything. English title: OPEN SEASON. |
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Céline et Julie Vont en Bateau (1974, FRA) C-193m. **½ D: Jacques Rivette. Starring Juliet Berto, Dominique Labourier, Bulle Ogier, Marie-France Pisier, Barbet Schroeder. Art film experiment loosely follows a plot line: Two young women, a librarian and a magician, meet and join forces in finding out the mystery behind a strange place, whose inhabitants behave the same way every day. By means of a drug the girls can enter their world and perhaps change it. Sounds much more interesting than it plays, this overlong experiment has no stylistic appeal and becomes much more pretentious than it can take. A curio, some critics loved this film; judge for yourself. Obvious similarities to Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland stories exist. Produced by Barbet Schroeder. English titles: CELINE AND JULIE GO BOATING, and PHANTOM LADIES OVER PARIS. |
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Cementerio del Terror (1985, MEX) C-90m. *½ D: Rubén Galindo. Starring Hugo Stiglitz, Usi Velasco, Erika Buenfil, Edna Bolkan, René Cardona III. Straight-forward, one-dimensional horror movie about a group of oversexed teens, who spend the night in a mansion near an old cemetery. Inadvertently, they will resurrect the body of recently deceased witch doctor, who could conjure up an army of zombies. Some atmosphere, but script is very dull (it even puts a group of kids in danger towards the end). Zombie fans might want to give this stinker a look, because the undead look quite nice. English title: CEMETERY OF TERROR. |
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Cell, The (2000, USA) C-107m. Scope M D: Tarsem Singh. Starring Jennifer Lopez, Vince Vaughn, Vincent D’Onofrio, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Jake Weber, Dylan Baker. Horrible cyber-trash movie about a brain research team, who are able to enter a person’s unconscious and find out about his dreams and fears. They try this new method on serial killer D’Onofrio, whose latest victim will die in 40 hours, if they don’t find out where he has hidden her. Pointless, ultimately unpleasant movie with terribly kitschy (and meaningless) cyber-scenes. Only for masochists. Latino-queen Lopez drew masses to see this film – she should have remained in lipstick commercials. |
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Cent Mille Dollars au Soleil (1963, FRA/ITA) 121m. Scope ** D: Henri Verneuil. Starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Lino Ventura, Reginald Kernan, Bernard Blier, Andréa Parisy, Gert Fröbe. French crime drama set in Africa: Truck driver Belmondo steals one of tycoon Fröbe’s lorries and goes on the lam with his girlfriend. Fröbe sends out Belmondo’s best friend Ventura to bring back the truck – whose cargo seems to be of great value. Great photography, laid-back performances in drama that has little to say and is still padded out to two hours. Georges Delerue’s score is much too dramatic (and too good) for this rather trivial piece of work. The stars are appealing. Claude Pinoteau was assistant director. Director Verneuil coscripted. Sometimes shown in a computer-colored version. English title: GREED IN THE SUN. |
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Cento Giorni a Palermo (1984, ITA/FRA) C-98m. **½ D: Giuseppe Ferrara. Starring Lino Ventura, Giuliana de Sio, Lino Troisi, Stefano Satta Flores. Typical Italian thriller drama dealing with the powerful grasp of the Mafia. An aged Ventura is fine as police commissioner in Palermo, Sicily, who tries to break the mobsters’ rule. Filmed in semi-documenary style, but also without any dramatic peaks. For those interested. Cowritten by Giuseppe Tornatore (NUOVO CINEMA PARADISO), who also directed the second unit. English title: 100 DAYS IN PALERMO. |
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C’Era una Volta il West (1968, ITA/USA) C-177m. Scope **** D: Sergio Leone. Starring Henry Fonda, Claudia Cardinale, Jason Robards, Charles Bronson, Gabriele Ferzetti, Paolo Stoppa, Woody Strode, Jack Elam, Keenan Wynn, Frank Wolff, Lionel Stander, Frank Brana, Aldo Sambrell, Fabio Testi. Legendary western masterpiece is the follow-up to Leone’s DOLLAR-trilogy and marks the highpoint in the director’s œuvre. Elegiac and melancholic in tone, this portrait of a dying West creates a languid mood that remains unmatched – in any genre. The arrival of a mysterious stranger with a harmonica (Bronson) coincides with that of beautiful Cardinale, who must learn that the man who married her in New Orleans was just killed in a ruthless assault. It turns out he bought land soon to be crossed by the railroad, much to tycoon Ferzetti and his henchman Fonda’s displeasure. What will Cardinale do with the land, and why is the man with the harmonica looking for Fonda? Story (concocted by none other than Dario Argento, Bernardo Bertolucci and director Leone) takes second chair to incredibly beautiful staging, brilliant color widescreen cinematography by Tonino delli Colli, and a haunting, unforgettable score by Ennio Morricone, probably his best. An awe-inspiring achievement, not to be missed. The best spaghetti western, and generally one of the best westerns of all time. Fonda is an especially brilliant villain. Shot in Spain and the U.S. (Monument Valley). Leone followed this with GIU LA TESTA (1971). Released in the U.S. at 140m. Regular print runs 165m., though several longer versions are in existence (extending scenes rather than adding new ones). English title: ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST. |
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Cercle Rouge, Le (1971, FRA/ITA) C-140m. ***½ D: Jean-Pierre Melville. Starring Alain Delon, André Bourvil, Yves Montand, François Périer, Gian Maria Volonté. Brilliant crime drama with superb cast, depressing and sober but masterfully directed. Commisaire Bourvil is after escaped criminal Périer, who is teaming up with recently released convict Delon and former police inspector Montand to perform a daring heist. Score and sound disappear at times but suspense is maintained by superlative mise-en-scène. Fine photography by Henri Decaë. Director Melville also wrote the screenplay and co-edited the picture. One of the best films of its time. Bourvil’s last film. Original running time is (allegedly) 150m. |
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Cerebral Print: The Secret Files (2005, USA) C-83m. M D: Ford Austin. Starring Jed Rowen, Felissa Rose, Richard Grove, Ethan Phillips, J.A. Steel, John Payne. Practically unwatchable comedy about a secret government branch that was founded in 1967 and deals with alien life forms. They have become specialists in obtaining cerebral prints, which feature memories of the aliens before their deaths. Totally obnoxious, inept. For masochists only. |
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C’è Sartana… Vendi la Pistola e Comprati la Bara! (1970, ITA) C-89m. Scope **½ D: Anthony Ascot (=Giuliano Carnimeo). Starring George Hilton, Charles Southwood, Piero Lulli, Erika Blanc. Gunslinger Hilton is so clever and fast, no one can stop him as he intends to solve mystery of recurring robberies of a gold transport. Stylishly directed, amusing and inventive, this is an above-average example of the spaghetti western genre, only weighed down by uneven plot. Good photography by Stelvio Massi, fine score by Francesco De Masi. English titles: FISTFUL OF LEAD, I AM SARTANA, TRADE YOUR GUNS FOR A COFFIN, SARTANA’S COMING, GET YOUR COFFINS READY. |
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C’est Arrivé Près de Chez Vous (1992, BEL) 99m. *** D: Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel, Benoît Poelvoorde. Starring Benoît Poelvoorde, Jenny Drye. A camera team (played by co-directors Belvaux and Bonzel) follows around brutal serial killer Poelvoorde. He spends his time slaughtering people just for the fun of it. Controversial portrait of a sick mind doesn’t bother with a plot, the realism of its black-and-white images and the hand-held camera convince the viewers right away of its intention. Film blatantly shows that violence happens right before our eyes - only we tend to look away. Darkly funny and shockingly violent, film is not for the faint at heart, though by „looking away“ from the screen one does exactly what the makers of the film want to show up: that it is difficult but necessary to break taboos. Watch out for cut versions. English title: MAN BITES DOG. |
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C’Est Pas Parce Qu’On A Rien A Dire Qu’Il Faut Fermer Sa Gueule (1975, FRA) C-93m. **½ D: Jacques Besnard. Starring Bernard Blier, Michel Serrault, Jean Lefebvre, Tsilla Chelton, Maurice Travail. Thierry Lhermitte, Christian Clavier, Gérard Jugnot. Bumbling thieves Serrault and Lefebvre are hired by Blier, who has discovered an easy way to dig through to the Bank of France – the safes are located next to the subway toilets! By means of disguising themselves in many different ways they want to fool the toilet attendant (Chelton). Mad-cap comedy has some hilarious moments, especially for fans of the stars. It would have needed a firmer directorial hand (Besnard did direct Louis de Funès in LE GRAND RESTAURANT). Based on an idea by Christian Clavier, Thierry Lhermitte and Gérard Jugnot. Title translates as WE HAVE TO SHUT UP, BUT NOT BECAUSE WE HAVE NOTHING TO SAY. |
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Chacun Cherche Son Chat (1996, FRA) C-91m. *** D: Cédric Klapisch. Starring Garance Clavel, Zinedine Soualem, Renée Le Calm, Olivier Py, and Arapimou as Gris-Gris the cat. Charming slice-of-life about young make-up artist Clavel, who learns that her cat has disappeared while she was away on holiday. During her search she meets all kinds of disparate characters, who all try to support her. She slowly discovers that the cat is not the only thing missing in her life. Perceptive, funny character study, a quite different approach to the problems of the Generation X. The characters are living, breathing persons and at the end you’ll feel sorry that they are not your friends, too. A young, spirited film for a young audience. |
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Chained Heat (1983, USA/GER) C-99m. *½ D: Paul Nicholas. Starring Linda Blair, John Vernon, Sybil Danning, Tamara Dobson, Stella Stevens, Henry Silva, Sharon Hughes. Sleazy ‘chicks in chains’ movie with an interesting cast about new inmate Blair and her problems with lesbianism, brutal gangs and sadistic personnel. Takes itself much too seriously. Stupid and violent – just what genre fans are looking for. Followed by a sequel or two (who cares?). If you must, check out RED HEAT (1985), which is also starring Blair. |
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Chain Gang (1984, USA) C-93m. *½ D: Worth Keeter. Starring Earl Owensby, Barry Bell, Robert Bloodworth, Terry Loughlin. After helping a hooker escape from crooks, she still gets killed and Owensby is framed for her murder. He is sent to prison for fifteen years, but somehow he gets involved with the killers again. Bleak, uninteresting something that is rotting in video stores by now. Some fast-paced, tense chase sequences save it from total disaster. |
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Chain of Fools (2000, USA) C-96m. **½ D: Traktor. Starring Steve Zahn, Salma Hayek, Jeff Goldblum, Elijah Wood, David Cross, Tom Wilkinson, Orlando Jones, Kevin Corrigan, David Hyde Pierce, Lara Flynn Boyle, John Cassini, Michael Rapaport. An exercise in PULP FICTION-like screenwriting, made by a team of five directors. Luckless hairdresser Zahn accidentally gets involved in robbery of three precious Chinese coins and spends the entire film trying to keep them, get them back, sell them. Policewoman Hayek is on the case. Some hilarious moments, but all too deliberately contructed. |
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Chain Reaction (1980, AUS) C-87m. *** D: Ian Barry. Starring Steve Bisley, Arna-Maria Winchester, Ross Thompson, Ralph Cotterill, Patrick Ward. Stylish thriller about an accident in a nuclear power plant and organisation’s attempts at covering it up by chasing a contaminated employee and a couple he meets during his flight across the wilderness. Script is very uneven but still thought-provoking, film is worth seeing for striking direction, camerawork and score. Director Barry creates some terrific car chase sequences, inspired obviously by George - MAD MAX - Miller, who coproduced the film. Mel Gibson appears briefly as a car mechanic. Alternative title: NUCLEAR RUN. |
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Chair de la Orchidée, La (1975, FRA/ITA/GER) C-112m. *** D : Patrice Chéreau. Starring Charlotte Rampling, Bruno Cremer, Edwige Feuillère, Simone Signoret, Alida Valli, Hans Christian Blech, Günter Meisner. Unusual, unconventional psycho drama about Rampling, an obviously disturbed woman who is picked up by two men after having witnessed a fatal accident. She refuses to explain herself, and only slowly does the viewer learn her story. Often confusing plot, deliberate pacing, film nevertheless manages to draw you in. A minor cult following takes to this. Based on the novel by James Hadley Chase. Director Chéreau’s first film. English titles: THE FLESH AND THE ORCHID, THE FLESH OF THE ORCHID. |
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Chakushin Ari (2003, JAP) C-112m. *** D: Takashi Miike. Starring Kou Shibasaki, Shin’ichi Tsutsumi, Kazue Fukiishi, Anna Nagata, Atsushi Ida, Mariko Tsutsui. Interesting horror chiller from the maker of ODISHON / AUDITION (1999). A clique of teenagers is terrified when members are found dead after receiving messages from themselves at the moment of their future deaths. Often tacky, typically Japanese, and uneven, but when it resorts to the chills, it’s scary as hell. Cleverly uses elements from RINGU and JU-ON, even Lars von Trier’s RIGET (1994). Recommended to buffs. English titles: ONE MISSED CALL, and YOU’VE GOT A CALL. |
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Challenge for Robin Hood, A (1967, GBR) C-96m. *½ D: C.M. Pennington-Richards. Starring Barrie Ingham, Peter Blythe, John Arnatt, Gay Hamilton, John Gugolka, James Hayter, Alfie Bass. Low-rent version of the popular, oft-filmed of the valiant rebel from Sherwood Forest. Ingham is an unlikely hero, most of the fight scenes are laughably staged, and film’s production value is low. Produced by Hammer Films. |
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Champagne Murders, The (1967, FRA) C-98m. Scope *** D: Claude Chabrol. Starring Anthony Perkins, Maurice Ronet, Stéphane Audran. Two playboys who enjoy a decadent lifestyle in Europe find themselves in trouble when murders happen which one of them might have committed. Unusual thriller/psycho drama-mix is fascinating to watch; the surprise twist at the end doesn’t work, however. Alternate French language version, titled LE SCANDALE, runs 111m. |
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Changing Lanes (2002, USA) C-99m. Scope ** D: Roger Michell. Starring Ben Affleck, Samuel L. Jackson, Kim Staunton, Toni Collette, Sydney Pollack, Amanda Peet, William Hurt, Dylan Baker. Typically contrived Hollywood drama about Wall Street lawyer Affleck and struggling alcoholic Jackson, whose lives intersect when they crash into each other’s cars. Affleck treats Jackson with disrespect, but leaves an important file behind. A painful psycho-battle ensues where both men could lose everything. Some fine performances aside, this is mean-spirited and manipulative and makes both men fear for the worst, before attaching a Hollywood ending. |
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Charley Varrick (1973, USA) C-111m. *** D: Don Siegel. Starring Walter Matthau, Joe Don Baker, Andrew Robinson, John Vernon, Felicia Farr. After robbing $750,000 from a New Mexico bank, Matthau realizes it’s the Mafia’s money and they will want it back. Soon, hitman Baker is hot on his trails. Clever script, cool star performances and a fine score by Lalo Schifrin are the assets of this thriller that is not always exciting but never boring. And an extra plus for that ending. |
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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005, USA) C-115m. *** D: Tim Burton. Starring Johnny Depp, Freddie Highmore, David Kelly, Helena Bonham Carter, Noah Taylor, Missi Pyle, James Fox, Deep Roy, Christopher Lee, narrated by Geoffrey Holder. Typically outré Burton outing, this adaptation of Roald Dahl’s satirical fantasy story is good, not great. Poor Charlie Bucket would love nothing more than to find a Golden Ticket, which would take him to eccentric hermite Willy Wonka and his amazing chocolate factory that five children are allowed to visit. Visually impressive, with indelible designs and ideas, though some of the set-pieces (and especially the songs) push the story too much into the background sometimes. Photographed by Philippe Rousselot, score and songs by Danny Elfman. Filmed before in 1971 as WILLY WONKA & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. |
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Charlie’s Angels (2000, USA) C-98m. Scope **½ D: McG (Joseph McGinty Nichols). Starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Bill Murray, Sam Rockwell, Kelly Lynch, Tim Curry, Crispin Glover, John Forsythe, Matt LeBlanc, LL Cool J, Tom Green, Chad Wilson. Hyperkinetic update of the popular 70s television series has almost nothing to do with the original (apart from the characters), becoming a furious action comedy instead. Plot is completely unimportant, action scenes (including some stunning martial arts sequences) take first chair. Music-video clip style becomes tiring after a while, especially because of the dumb plot. Still, not bad, an eye-popping, fast-paced fun-film, with a most enjoyable trio of stars (not to forget the hilarious Bill Murray). |
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Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle (2003, USA) C-107m. Scope ** D: McG. Starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Bernie Mac, Crispin Glover, Justin Theroux, Robert Patrick, Demi Moore, Matt LeBlanc, Luke Wilson, John Cleese, Robert Forster, Eric Bogosian, Pink, Carrie Fisher, Bruce Willis, voice of John Forsythe. Sequel to CHARLIE’S ANGELS (2000) bears little resemblance to the hit TV series. The Angels are after two rings which contain information from the witness protection programme, sought after by all syndicates imaginable. This stylized, music video clip-like action movie could be called a fantasy action film with all its unbelievable stunts. Some fun is to be had, if you don’t get a headache. Almost on a par with the first movie. Hard to believe this was cowritten by John August (BIG FISH). |
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Charlotte’s Web (1973, USA) C-96m. *** D: Charles A. Nichols, Iwao Takamoto. Starring the voices of Debbie Reynolds, Paul Lynde, Henry Gibson, Agnes Moorehead, narrated by Rex Allen. Sweet-natured animated feature from the Hanna-Barbera studios, about the life of piglet Wilbur, who is saved from certain death by a little girl, but is later sold to another farm. He befriends spider Charlotte (voiced by Debbie Reynolds), who teaches him a lot about life and death. Good for kids and adults, as movie is simply animated but also tackles philosophical issues. Based on the book by E.B. White. |
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Charlotte’s Web (2006, USA) C-97m. *** D: Gary Winick. Starring Dakota Fanning, Kevin Anderson, Essie Davis, Louis Corbett, Beau Bridges, (and the voices of) Julia Roberts, Steve Buscemi, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey, Cedric the Entertainer, Kathy Bates, Reba McEntire, Robert Redford, Thomas Haden Church, narrated by Sam Shepard. Heart-warming, good-looking remake of the 1973 Hanna-Barbera cartoon about a spring pig and its unusual friendship with a spider, who teaches him a few lessons on life. Good score by Danny Elfman contributes to a fine family-viewing experience. |
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Chasing Amy (1997, USA) C-113m. ***½ D: Kevin Smith. Starring Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, Jason Lee, Dwight Ewell, Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Matt Damon, Casey Affleck. Unpretentious, touching slice-of-life about a comicbook-artist (Affleck) who falls in love with a beautiful but gay young woman (Adams). All the complications that ensue are completely convincing because of the filmmaker’s natural approach. Well-acted, immensely appealing film, written and coedited by the director of CLERKS. |
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Chasseurs des Dragons (2008,
FRA/GER/LUX) C-80m. SCOPE **½ D: Guillaume Ivernel, Arthur Qwak.
Starring (the voices of) Vincent Lindon, Patrick Timsit, Philippe Nahon,
Amanda Lear, Jeremy Prevost. Big-screen adaptation of the animated TV series
about a warrior, his companion and their pet dragon, who live in a kind of
sky world, where entire buildings on huge rocks float in the air. They are
joined by a little girl, whose uncle is hiring warriors to defeat a mythical
monster, the so-called world-eater. A bit unconventional, eccentric, with
some storytelling flaws, this adventure is well-animated and exciting in its
action sequences, but the characters never really come to life. The English
version, titled DRAGON HUNTERS, stars Forest Whitaker. |
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Chat, Le (1971, FRA/ITA) C-86m. *** D: Pierre Granier-Deferre. Starring Jean Gabin, Simone Signoret, Annie Cordy, Jacques Rispal, Nicole Desailly. Somber drama, based on the Georges Simenon novel, about frustrated Signoret and embittered Gabin, who have only hatred for each other, after being married for 20 years. Gabin’s beloved cat paves the way for the ultimate tragedy. Well-acted chronicle of things coming to an end is especially notable for its use of symbolism. An often minimalist, ponderous but ultimately rewarding drama. Score by Philippe Sarde. English title: THE CAT. |
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Che? (1972, ITA/FRA/GER) C-114m. Scope *** D: Roman Polanski. Starring Marcello Mastroianni, Sydne Rome, Hugh Griffith, Guido Alberti, Romolo Valli, Roman Polanski, Dieter Hallervorden. < |